Uefa’s head of refereeing defended the high number of penalty kicks awarded at Euro 2020 so far and said they were the result of effective use of VAR technology rather than generous awards.

The group stage produced 14 penalties which is two more than in the entire 2016 tournament.

“There is more accuracy for sure and before the VAR project there were many, many fouls in the penalty area missed by referees,” said Roberto Rosetti, Uefa’s chief of refereeing.

“Now it is impossible to miss these, (such as) a clear step on the foot in the penalty area, and with VAR it is very easy to assess,” he added in a briefing with reporters.

“The penalty is a serious moment in football, we don’t like soft penalties, we want clear penalties, we want to see a clear action of the defender, clear fouls from the defender,” Rosetti said.

Rosetti highlighted the decision not to award a penalty for a slight step on the foot of Raheem Sterling in England’s match with Scotland as an example of not punishing “marginal” or slight contact.

The Italian praised the use of VAR in the tournament, which Uefa says has been quicker and less disruptive than in some competitions.

“We know very well the strength but also the limits of the project,” he said.